Batman In Arkham Wonderland
by Fluffeh.Nightmare.Reaper
Summary: Bruce Wayne is Batman. It's time he found out his real identity, he can only have one. What will he find... the truth or a super villain plot? A superhero twist on the classic idea of Alice in wonderland
1. Chapter 1 - Into Arkham

**Chapter 1 - Into Arkham**

Gotham City had been rather quiet on the crime front; Bruce Wayne had been enjoying this, although he was quite worried about the up rise of an evil front. However, this would be impossible in the current situation; Harley Quinn, The Joker, Poison Ivy and Two Face were all in Arkham. Nothing would be changing this any time soon. The smaller gang members had disbanded after the Joker had been reprimanded and sent to Arkham, yet again. There was nothing that could disturb the peace of the city, Gotham was finally safe.

Night was approaching, and as Bruce Wayne pulled on his caped crusader ensemble to do his night patrol, one last time before he hung up his cape for good, something caught his eye. The newspaper, he dismissed it and climbed into the bat-mobile, and was off. His first stop was always just on the border fence of Arkham; he liked to keep a tab on his insane bunch.

"Evening, I take it everything is in check?" He asked the guard who was on watch this particular night.

"In order and heavily guarded, Sir" replied the guard. Batman nodded in agreement and turned towards the bat-mobile, as he was just about to jump into it and be gone, he looked over and saw what seemed to be Poison Ivy... but it just couldn't be could it?

He turned around and walked over to the hedgerow that ran down the side of the asylum for the criminally insane, and as sure as it was Poison Ivy was stood there with a worried look on her face.  
"Ivy... how did you get out" Batman asked her.

"You don't have time, you're late" She replied and blew some of her spore powder into his face causing him to have a short lived but instant infatuation with her, and as to plan, he followed her into Arkham. As they approached the door, she ran off. Batman was bewildered as he snapped out of the powder's spell, confused why he was on the other side of the fence. He didn't remember how he'd gotten there.

Batman walked over to the fence to find the guard who'd been stood there before, but he'd gone. Batman was worried that there was going to be trouble, he tried to contact someone with the bat-talkie, but there was nothing, just the silence. He checked the radar on the bat-GPS but it was blank. He decided to go in to investigate some more.


	2. Chapter 2 - What's on the Other Side?

**Chapter 2 - What's on the Other Side?**

Batman opened the door to the asylum, and looked into the dank, dark corridor. There was a metal cage style door between the reception room and the rest of the asylum. He went over to the desk, expecting to find a receptionist but there was no – one there. He looked around but seemingly empty. He decided to ring the buzzer which was on the main desk. He waited around for a while and there was still nothing. He used the bat-master key to open the cage type door and locked it behind him. He looked around the maze of corridors, but there was nothing, out of no where he heard a most sinister laugh, wondering where it was coming from he followed the sound, but no matter which way he went it didn't seem any further away, but on the contrary, it wasn't closer either.

"Who's there" he asked, trying to sound unaffected by this seemingly practical joke...Joker. He thought to himself but he couldn't be could he? How would he have come up with such a riddle...Riddler? Batman was starting to wonder if this was a scheme to free themselves.

"How, can one tell you who they are, if you do not know who you are?" the voice replied. Batman was confused and looked around.

"At least show yourself" He replied, ignoring the stupid fashion in which the voice was talking.

"I am here, if you can not see, maybe you do not wish to see, if you wished to see, then you would see I am here" the voice replied. Batman was beginning to get frustrated.

"If I did not wish to see, I would not ask to see, see?" Batman replied, and looked around.

"No, I do not see." The voice replied. Then Batman realized who it was he was most likely talking to

"Riddler! Show yourself." he demanded and sure as day, the Riddler was sat there on a mushroom top, smoking from a pipe. Batman blinked twice, surely he could not have come from nowhere, and where did the giant mushroom come from?

Batman took in a deep breath and looked around, if Riddler was here, then surely the others would be around somewhere, and Poison Ivy couldn't have just vanished. Then again, the Riddler has just appeared... so the laws of usual logic didn't seem to work very well in here. Batman was worried he might fall into a trap, he tried contacting someone but there was still no reception on the bat-talkie. He looked at the Riddler, and all the Riddler did was smoke his pipe.


	3. Chapter 3 - Riddling The Identity

**Chapter 3 – Riddling the Identity**

Riddler took another drag on his pipe, he didn't know why he was smoking, he'd been told it was more "fitting" so he decided to do just that.  
"So, who are you?" he asked, looking at Batman, thinking up as many riddles as he could before he was answered. Batman looked at him and opened his mouth, closed it again, remembering that revealing his true identity wasn't possible.  
"Batman" he replied. Riddler just laughed. It wasn't the laugh from earlier, that had come from someone or something else.  
"Not hardly" he replied, taking another drag from his pipe and blowing smoke rings that clouded the room. Batman coughed,  
"Not hardly? Well of course, I am the Batman" he said again he couldn't see much as it was dark and the room was full of smoke.

"I know who I am, but do you know who you are?" The Riddler replied and then it all fell silent and out of the cloud of smoke there was a laugh, the same one that had been heard before. All Batman could make out in the smoke was a face. It then spoke to him.  
"He's like that you know, oh, yes, he does like a good riddle, much to the same that, I do love a good joke... do you have any?" The Joker asked him, as he stood there, seemingly floating in the air whilst he waited for a response from the still bewildered Batman.  
"I am not one for telling jokes." Batman said, in a serious tone. "Nor, do I appreciate riddles" he added, not knowing if The Riddler could hear him. As the smoke dissipated, more of The Joker became visible, almost as if, he'd been invisible and just appeared.  
"I'm sure I could muster up a few jokes for you then...or maybe a riddle... no, a joke it must me, I do like to smile a lot...oh, look at the time, you're very late... you mustn't keep them waiting" The Joker replied "Shame, I was rather looking forward to a joke, ah well, time is off the essence, and they shan't be too pleased if you're late, now run along" he added. Batman looked at him and frowned under his bat-mask.

"How can one be late, for one does not know where one is going" Batman replied to The Joker, who seemingly mistook it for a joke, as he began to laugh.  
"Well there is two paths, the one you should take, and the one you shouldn't" The Joker stated... and then looked over at Batman.  
"Well, Joker, seeing how you seem to know where I must be, which is the right one?" Batman replied. The Joker laughed,

"That is not for me to decide, you are the one to decide. One will take you one way, and one will take you another" The Joker added. Almost from nowhere the Riddler appeared.  
"That was my line Joker" He whispered to The Joker under his breath and then looked at Batman. "How can one know where one is going, if one does not know who they are?"The Riddler was beginning to get angry. "You claim I am late, yet neither of you seem to know where I should go" he stated, the Riddler looked at him and laughed, and the Joker joined in.  
"We do know, but the point is, it's not for us to know, it is you who is going" the Riddler explained and then laughed again.  
"This is not a joking matter, there is no need for your excessive laughter." Batman shouted, but this seemed to amuse them some more.

Two-face walked up behind Batman.  
"One must know where one is going, so I will show you" he said flatly. Batman turned around.  
"Two-face, now why would you be interested in helping me now?" Batman asked.  
"You're late. It's rude to be late" he replied, completely avoiding the question.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Path Of Destiny

**Chapter 4 - The Path of Destiny**

Batman was looking at two-face, and just seeing how insane Harvey Dent had become since that fateful day...it worried him if reality was really that stable, if one event could turn someone into an insane criminal mastermind. Of course he'd had help from the Joker on that front.

"So, Batman, which path will you take, the right, or the left?" The Riddler asked again suppressing another laughing session. The Joker looked at them all  
"Well seeing as you've stopped being fun and taking this all as a joke, I'm off." He said and disappeared in the same smoky fashion that he'd appeared.

"Well, which is the right path Riddler?" Batman asked, watching the Riddler as he sat atop the mushroom, creating more smoky clouds around them all.  
"You, are the only one who knows which path is the right path." The Riddler replied. Batman was getting sick of the riddles that the Riddler was coming out with and just glared at him with the bat-stare.  
"I'm out of here, you're just talking nonsense" Batman said angrily and pushed passed the Riddler, only to come face to face with Two-face, if such a thing was possible.  
"Well, Batman, you have a choice to take the right path, or the wrong path" Harvey said, and then looked down the right hand side, then two-face came to the surface.  
"It all depends now doesn't it, what you want and what you don't. But you're late, and they wont be too happy about that" The insane side of two-face said, rather manically.

"You need to choose because time is running away with itself." Harvey Dent said with a smile, it looked genuine, like something from long ago. Batman looked up at two-face and wondered if all hope was really lost or if it could be found in him again. He dismissed it as quickly as he had imagined it.  
"Choose. Not one can choose for you. Your destiny is in your hands and no-one else can make it" Two-face replied. Batman mulled it over and then replied.

"Harvey..." he began, Two-face grimaced as though he'd been punched or something.  
"It's TWO-FACE!" he roared, the echoes from his shout reverberated from all the walls in the asylum, making everyone's ears ring momentarily. Batman looked at him and sighed.  
"Either way, lead the way...after all like you said, I'm late and I must not be any later" Batman said calmly. Two-Face looked at him and smirked.  
"Which route would you take? Each leads to the same place, just two different... I know... why not leave it down to luck. Heads we take the right, if not we go left." Two-face replied.  
"Is this something you should really leave to chance... to luck?" Batman questioned, and Two-face simply smiled and replied.

"I make my own luck." and with that he flipped the coin. As it cascaded down through the air, it landed heads up. "Well, then, we shall escort you down the right path" he added then turned to the Riddler who was still sat atop his mushroom.  
"One will know which is right, when one is able to tell, who one is" he said, taking another puff from his pipe and slunk into the cloud of smoke, as Two-face and Batman headed off down the right path.


	5. Chapter 5 - A Late Arrival

**Chapter 5 - A Late Arrival**

For what seemed like a long time, they had been walking down the path, not saying anything, just in silence, not even looking at each other. Batman seemed distracted almost, as he was vigilant of the dank corridor they were walking down, not knowing what could be lurking ahead in the dark. He still wasn't sure what he was late for, but he didn't know he'd been expected. Something didn't seem to fit, but he knew Two-Face wouldn't give him any answers, and he'd already almost caused a riot back at the corridor interjection.

After a while he could hear voices, and he wasn't sure exactly where they were coming from, but then as they got to the end of the corridor it opened into a rather large room, in which there was a dinner table, and sat around it was Bane, Penguin and Mad Hatter. Batman took a step back but he felt Two-Face firmly push him towards the table. Bane was the first to speak, but not to him, it seemed he was talking to the Penguin.

"Lateness, is a reflection of the mind… one simply isn't all there it would seem!" he said and the Penguin gave a malicious grin.  
"Bane! You shall be quite right in that sense! Isn't that right Hatter?" and then paused and picked up the teapot "More tea?" he asked. The Mad Hatter looked at him and then nodded  
"Tea, more tea, always more tea!" he cried, and then looked at Bane. "Pass the sugar…" he asked, and bane threw it at him. And all 3 of them began laughing. It was quite a frightening ordeal really.

Batman wasn't really too sure what he was supposed to do. He just stood their waiting and then when he was about say something the Mad Hatter spoke up.  
"How rude of us to not offer you tea…Would you like some tea?" He asked, but Batman politely declined with a shake of his head.  
"It's such a shame Robin can't be joining us for this un-birthday celebration!" He added. Batman was confused as to what the Hatter meant.  
"Un-birthday?" he asked and the Mad Hatter laughed and then turned back to face Batman.  
"Yes, a Un-Birthday, see you celebrate one birthday a year but 364 un-birthdays!" The Mad Hatter replied with a smile only he would be able to master.  
"Arkham isn't a place for celebration though…" Batman said casually. They all burst out in laughter.  
"We're not in Arkham any more" They all replied in unison.


End file.
